


The Key

by Heather_Night



Category: Animal Kingdom (TV)
Genre: Happy Ending, M/M, Misunderstandings, POV Adrian Dolan, POV Deran Cody
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-07 14:10:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18412241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heather_Night/pseuds/Heather_Night
Summary: Deran stared at the 13-inch screen of his Dell laptop, frowning.  He’d gone grocery shopping that morning and he’d checked, double-checked and was now triple-checking that he had all of the ingredients.He tried to relax his tense shoulders but it was a losing cause.  He’d invited Adrian over for a romantic meal tonight and he wanted everything to be fucking perfect.  It seemed as though they were headed toward an exclusive relationship, at least if Deran had his way that would be the outcome, and he wanted to prove to Adrian that he was worth taking a chance on.





	The Key

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JinxedAmbitions](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JinxedAmbitions/gifts).



> This was written for the 'Deran and Adrian Fic Exchange 2019' hosted on Tumblr. I was lucky enough to write for the prompt supplied by JinxedAmbitions: Ignoring most of the events of Season 3, Deran tries to cook Adrian a romantic dinner, but gets called in for a job in the middle. He forgets to call Adrian to cancel. Adrian comes and finds Deran left everything and finishes preparing the meal, so when Deran comes back the tables are turned on him, and Adrian is surprising him with a romantic dinner.
> 
> A huge thank you to all of the participants for making this first AK/Deran & Adrian Exchange Event not only successful but fun; to my co-conspirator, @Ires-Posts, for your hard work and creativity with the hosting duties; and to my beta and all around excellent support, @allthehearteyes.

Deran stared at the 13-inch screen of his Dell laptop, frowning. He’d gone grocery shopping that morning and he’d checked, double-checked and was now triple-checking that he had all of the ingredients.

He tried to relax his tense shoulders but it was a losing cause. He’d invited Adrian over for a romantic meal tonight and he wanted everything to be fucking perfect. It seemed as though they were headed toward an exclusive relationship, at least if Deran had his way that would be the outcome, and he wanted to prove to Adrian that he was worth taking a chance on.

In the past he’d taken his relationship with Adrian for granted in some ways but he’d made some changes and it seemed Adrian had noticed. Now he needed to close the deal.

The Drop was closed on Mondays and although it wasn’t a particularly romantic day of the week it meant he’d be able to use the bar’s kitchen—and the loft if he got lucky—without interruptions.

The recipe he had selected featured New York Strip steaks which Adrian loved. Deran wasn’t sure how he felt about making something with garlic but as long as they both ate it, it shouldn’t interfere with his plans involving the loft.

Most importantly the recipe required shallots which was something Adrian had never tried before. At least that was true as of a few years ago. It had somehow come up when they were in Belize and Deran had filed it away for future use. Deran still hoped that was the case because he liked turning Adrian on to new things. 

Spoiling him. 

Although he had to be careful otherwise Adrian got touchy. His friend was independent and didn’t like it when he thought Deran was, to quote Adrian from about ten years ago, _buying him off._

Deran wasn’t trying to buy him off. He was trying to show the stubborn idiot he cared. He’d always cared. Even when they were just friends, Deran had cared. Seeing his friend struggle with just the basics like food, clothing, hell, sometimes even a place to stay…it was hard. He would’ve moved Adrian into Smurf’s house in a heartbeat except he’d recognized at a pretty young age that he didn’t want to put Adrian in the kind of danger living with the Codys would’ve brought him.

Instead Deran had learned to be sneaky if he wanted to do something for Adrian as well as keep him safe. 

His phone rang and Deran thought about ignoring it but when he glanced down, he saw it was J. 

J who always texted unless it was an emergency.

Deran’s stomach churned with nerves as he answered. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a problem. We can’t find Craig and we think someone took him. Smurf said to meet at the warehouse now.”

_Fuck._

Clutching his hair with his free hand, Deran yanked on it in consternation. He took a steadying breath; he’d just have to go find Craig’s dumbass and drag him home and he’d still have time to meet Adrian back here for dinner. “I’ll see you in twenty minutes.”

He shoved the New York Strip steaks into the refrigerator and left the non-perishables out on the stainless island before he bolted for the door.

Craig was probably stoned out of his mind, hanging with Renn, ignoring his family. Deran would find his brother, pawn him off on Smurf because he fucking deserved it after pulling this shit, and still be back in plenty of time to meet Adrian.

Nothing was going to ruin this night.

-0-

Adrian had been surprised when Deran had given him a key to the bar and invited him to join him for dinner at 8 p.m.; he still wasn’t sure which was more shocking—the key or the invitation.

Deran guarded his privacy closely and Adrian had always understood that even when it hurt. He’d been left cooling his heels more times than he could count when Deran was running late and didn’t trust him with the security code for Smurf’s place or even a warehouse. Being entrusted with the key to The Drop was like being given the keys to the kingdom; he could enter and leave at will.

Not that he would. He respected Deran’s place of business—his dream—too much to fuck it up.

The invitation was also baffling. They rarely made plans in advance. Or at least Adrian usually didn’t know about them. Deran might have plans but Adrian always felt like he was an afterthought if he was included.

Deran offered Adrian a meal because he was there and he was already making something for himself. If they went out somewhere it was usually because Deran had plans in advance and Adrian just happened to be there.

It had driven him crazy when he was a teen but at some point, he’d come to the realization that he just wasn’t good enough for Deran to make the effort for. That didn’t stop Adrian from wanting to hang around the guy though.

Deran was complex. 

_Beautiful_ but not full of himself. 

_Smart_ when something interested him; The Drop easily made that case. Deran didn’t know anything about managing a bar but he’d made it happen.

_Passionate._ No one had ever made Adrian feel as much as Deran. Physically and emotionally.

Adrian just didn’t understand what had changed. 

He let himself into the bar but he almost backed out and closed the door when he realized The Drop was completely dark. “Deran?”

He waited for his friend to jump out and try to scare the crap out of him but the place was silent.

After relocking the entrance Adrian flicked the switch next to the door and let his eyes adjust to the gloomy interior. It was empty.

Since Deran had mentioned dinner, Adrian drifted toward the kitchen. It took a moment for the overhead light to fully charge and when it blinked on, Adrian stared at the kitchen island.

There was a bottle each of Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard. He noticed the garlic and mushrooms but there was something in a little mesh bag that he didn’t recognize.

He picked it up and looked it over. The tag said _shallots._

Maybe Deran had remembered their conversation in Belize about Adrian never having tried shallots. Hell, he’d never even heard of them. There wasn’t much good Adrian could say about Smurf but she liked to cook and she especially liked to feed her boys so Deran had been exposed to some top-notch meals.

Adrian had grown up on Kraft mac and cheese.

The Dell laptop had gone to sleep but Adrian touched a key and waited to enter what he thought was Deran’s password. He snorted when it worked, talking out loud because the silence of the place was creeping him out. “Jesus, Deran, you need to use something other than your birthday for your logins. Talk about shitty security measures.” 

He stopped composing his computer security lecture as he got a look at the recipe displayed on the screen: Wine Merchant Steak. 

Adrian wouldn’t know the difference between the bottle of Gamay Beaujolais sitting on the table and Gewurztraminer which he only remembered the name of because it sounded funny to him but it looked like Deran had gone through a whole lot of trouble.

_For Adrian._

He pulled the stool over and sat at the island, checking out the recipe. Knowing Deran he’d come strolling in soon, saying something about having lost track of time, or having other plans, and making Adrian feel like he was insignificant.

Until then he’d just sit here and read about the amazing meal Deran had planned, hopefully for him.

Hell, if Deran didn’t show up soon he’d be tempted to go ahead and make it himself.

-0-

Deran squinted at the driveway, making sure Adrian’s Suburban wasn’t parked there. Chad’s Camry was there but not Adrian’s wheels.

Adrian must be really pissed at him and with good reason. Deran had been too busy saving Craig’s ass to even text Adrian and by the time he did get the chance, it was going on midnight. 

There’d been no response to his frantic text message. Or his calls.

Now Adrian wasn’t at home.

Deran’s shoulders hunched forward, exhaustion weighing on him heavily. He’d probably built the evening into something more than he should’ve but things had been going well with Adrian.

Really well.

They talked just as much as they had when they’d been best friends but now there was a flirty edge to most of what they said. And it wasn’t just Deran’s imagination; Craig had noticed it, too. Craig who really was a dumbass in most things but when it came to people, his brother wasn’t a complete fuck-up.

Unless the people in question had vaginas then all bets were off. Craig had flirted with the wrong chick and gotten his ass kidnapped and beaten for his troubles. 

Sometimes the people with vaginas were every bit as ruthless as the people with penises and you would think Craig would know that because, hello, Smurf. It would be interesting to see if Craig learned anything after his little escapade today.

Deran snorted; of course, he wouldn’t.

His amusement faded as he headed toward The Drop. He’d blown it with Adrian. 

He parked in his usual spot and dragged himself inside, feeling let down that Adrian’s Suburban wasn’t parked nearby. That had been his last piece of hope and it was now stomped beneath the tires of his van.

The bar itself was dark as he entered the side door but he saw a light from beneath the kitchen door.

His Taurus 9mm Revolver was in his hand before he really thought about it. If someone was stupid enough to break into his bar, they deserved to get a gun in the face.

Pushing the door open, Deran’s jaw dropped at the sight in front of him: Adrian was seated at the island, head cushioned on folded arms across the stainless-steel surface, eyes closed. A pan sat on the stove’s cold burner.

A pan with all of the ingredients he’d bought earlier.

Deran approached the stovetop. It smelled every bit as good as he’d hoped it would. He lightly touched the sauce, noting it was warm but not hot so he could put it in Tupperware and store it in the refrigerator if they didn’t eat it now.

He sucked the liquid from his finger; tasty.

Adrian had made him dinner instead of running off, mad. He probably hadn’t responded to Deran’s texts and calls because he was deeply asleep. His heart squeezed but it wasn’t with pain; it was joy. 

Moving closer, Deran cupped the back of Adrian’s neck and squeezed lightly. He readied himself in case Adrian bolted upright or threw a punch; Adrian just sighed in response.

“Hey, Adrian.” Maybe his voice would penetrate Adrian’s sleep where his touch had failed.

That seemed to register and Adrian flexed his muscles a little before pushing upward. “Deran?”

It was a good thing Deran was standing behind him because Adrian almost unseated himself from the stool when he spun around and Deran was able to steady him.

Dopy, sleep-addled Adrian was one of Deran’s favorites; when he was like this Adrian was pliant.

And cuddly.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m sorry I wasn’t here. Do you want to eat now?” Deran wasn’t hungry but he’d invited Adrian over for dinner and he wanted to show him he mattered.

Adrian squinted up at him, some hair drooping over an eye, frowning. “Deran?”

Okay. Adrian wasn’t going to wake up enough for dinner. “Yeah, let me clean up and then I’ll run you home.” He didn’t want to take Adrian home but it was the least he could do after leaving him high and dry all evening.

Deran could feel Adrian’s attention on him as he moved around the kitchen. He found the right size container for the leftovers—did they qualify as leftovers if they never had a chance to eat them?—and stored them in the refrigerator. The Farberware pan was put into the sink to soak; he’d deal with that in the morning when he had the energy.

Adrian stared at Deran but Deran wasn’t sure he was seeing anything. He held out his hand. “Do you want me to run you home or do you want to stay here?” He was exhausted and wanted nothing more to lay down, with Adrian, but it was Adrian’s choice.

Nodding his head, Adrian accepted Deran’s help as he climbed to his feet. Deran realized he wasn’t going to get a verbal answer and steered Adrian out of the kitchen and toward the entrance to the loft. Adrian would let him know if this wasn’t what he wanted. He’d always been good about voicing his wishes even when Deran didn’t want to hear them.

As much as he’d anticipated hot sex with Adrian, cuddling with the guy was a close second.

He was getting his way tonight—Adrian in his bed—but he’d do his best tomorrow to make sure Adrian got whatever he wanted.

-0-

Adrian woke up feeling well rested. He tried to roll out of bed but something kept him anchored down.

His eyes popped open and he realized a lightly tanned arm was curled around his waist. That explained the warmth at his back.

It was weird because Deran didn’t like to cuddle—he’d said as much when they’d been teenagers—but sleep-Deran didn’t seem to know that and held Adrian close.

Not that he was complaining. 

Adrian hadn’t wanted to be presumptuous and had left a bag in his car in the hopes that he’d be staying the night. He at least wanted the toothbrush and toothpaste and maybe the deodorant and a change of clothes before he faced Deran.

With as much stealth as he could manage Adrian worked his way from beneath Deran’s grasp. Once he was downstairs, he made sure the side door wasn’t locked as he made the trek to his car; he’d parked it down the road so if one of Deran’s brothers stopped by, they wouldn’t know he had company. Adrian knew Deran was out but he didn’t want to flaunt anything and get his ass kicked, or worse, cause Deran problems.

By the time he returned Deran was sitting at the bar, glass holding something amber clutched in his hand, staring moodily into space. “It’s a bit early for that isn’t it? Did something happen? Is everyone okay?”

Deran swiveled on the bar stool and stared at Adrian, a big smile overtaking his face. “I thought you left.”

Adrian held up his bag. “I wanted to brush my teeth.”

Snorting, Deran set the glass down and climbed to his feet. “Of course you did.” He rubbed the back of his neck, his skin flushing a pretty pink. Deran didn’t blush often but when he did it was a sight to behold. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here last night.”

His mouth might’ve flopped open but he snapped it shut as soon as he realized he probably looked like a moron. Adrian wouldn’t say Deran never apologized but…yeah, pretty close to never. At least not to Adrian. “I figured something came up.” That at least was neutral. _Something came up_ could be anywhere on the spectrum between _forgot_ or _on a job_.

Deran pulled a face. “Craig fucked with the wrong chick and got a beat down.”

Okay, that hadn’t really pinged on his radar as a possibility for being stood up. It was definitely original. And understandable. Deran’s family always came first and Adrian respected that about him. “Is he okay?”

Shrugging, Deran answered, “I dumped him off with Smurf and hightailed it back here.” He rubbed at the back of his neck again and another wave of color fanned over his skin. “So, too early for dinner?”

Adrian slapped his forehead with his free hand. “Shit, I forgot to put the stuff away!” He moved toward the kitchen but was easily intercepted by Deran.

“Relax, I took care of it last night. You were really out of it.” Deran squeezed Adrian’s biceps and a thrill shot down Adrian’s spine.

“Oh.” That explained why he didn’t remember climbing into bed. “I guess I was tired.” He’d been up early, trying to burn some of his excess energy off—nerves and excitement—hitting the waves until he’d gone in to work. It had been busy but the thought of seeing Deran had kept him sane.

Deran snorted again. “I’ll say.” He cleared his throat, a funny look on his face. “Do you randomly cook dinner when your date is late?”

Adrian stilled; maybe the dinner hadn’t been meant for him. “Oh.” But Deran had referred to himself as his date. Fuck his head was beginning to ache from trying to figure out the clues.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Deran was in his space, a finger soothing the space between Adrian’s brows where the skin pinched. “Go brush and I’ll start the water for the egg noodles. We can reheat the other stuff in the microwave.”

His feet moved toward the bathroom before his brain caught up; there was something about Deran when he was in take-charge mode that made Adrian fall into line.

When he emerged with clean teeth, face and hands it was to find Deran in the kitchen. Two plates next to the stove held a steak each along with a fair helping of the reduction or whatever the hell you called the sauce. The water was starting to boil.

Adrian realized the stainless-steel island had been covered with a red and white checked table cloth. The silverware was laid out. “Um, do you want me to pour us something to drink?” He felt useless just standing there even though he reminded himself he’d made the food.

“Whatever you want. I’ll have the same.” Deran’s back was to him so he couldn’t read his expression. His body language seemed relaxed though.

Adrian returned to the bar and dug around the cooler behind the bar. He found some S. Pellegrino Sparkling waters and brought them back to the kitchen.

He stopped in the doorway; Deran had lit a candle and placed it on the checked table cloth. The microwave was whirring away. The egg noodles were in the water.

In a space of minutes Adrian was pushed onto a stool, a plate of Wine Merchant Steak in front of him, Deran sitting across from him. 

Adrian bit his lip as Deran cut off a bite of steak and scooped up some of the other mixture. The other man caught him staring and smiled. “It’s great. Really. Try some.”

He tried to relax and enjoy the meal. “It turned out better than I thought it would. Although I have to say that recipe was pretty simple to follow, even for me.”

“About the recipe, how did you know my password for the laptop?” Deran didn’t seem upset as he sipped some of the sparkling water from a goblet. 

“Well, you need to change your passwords. You’ve been using your birthday since we were kids.” Adrian held the rest of the lecture inside.

Deran rolled his eyes, clearly unoffended. “Yeah, I know. But there’s always better stuff to do with my time. Like this. Being with you. I’d like to do more of that.”

Adrian carefully set his utensils down. Some of his earlier confusion—and doubts—returned. He began to play with the stem of his goblet. “To be clear, are you saying you want to invite me over, have me cook dinner for you and show up after midnight?”

The other man set his utensils down and Adrian tried to read his expression but came up blank. It wasn’t anger. It wasn’t amusement. It was…

Deran reached across the island and clasped Adrian’s hand with his own. “Well, no, I’d rather be here with you. As often as you can.”

“Wait, are you saying—?” Adrian was cut off as Craig barreled into the kitchen.

Adrian was on his feet, looking for an escape, but Craig managed to block both exits open to him. 

Bracing himself for some sort of eruption, Adrian closed his eyes.

“So, that’s why you aren’t answering your phone. Did you ask him yet?” Craig didn’t sound pissed; he sounded excited.

Adrian cracked his eyes open and stared. Craig’s face was mottled with black and blue bruises and although he was standing Adrian wouldn’t exactly call it being upright. His eyes were glazed, probably high from either prescription or non- prescription pharmaceuticals, and Adrian hoped he hadn’t driven himself.

Pope strolled into the kitchen; that answered that question. “Did you ask him yet?”

What. The. Fuck.

Deran stood between Adrian and his brothers. “Just ignore them. Please.” This time the blush was red, not pink, and Deran looked like he would like to throttle someone.

Hopefully not Adrian.

Craig butted in, ignoring Deran’s glower. “Are you two going steady?”

“Going steady.” Pope, not one to show when he was amused, snorted. “What is this, a fifties sitcom?”

Turning around so his back was to Adrian, Deran fisted his hands. “No, this is me telling you to fuck off. We haven’t had a chance to talk yet.”

This time it was Craig who snorted. “You guys can’t even keep your hands off each other long enough to talk, can you? I called it.” He turned to Pope. “You owe me fifty bucks.”

Pope scowled. “Fuck you, Craig.”

“No, fuck you both.” Deran sounded furious. “Out!”

The older Cody glared at Deran but tipped a nod Adrian’s way before he grabbed Craig’s arm. “Come on.”

Craig let himself be tugged out of the kitchen but his mouth was still running. “Nice to see you, Adrian. Hope to see more of you. Um, more often that is, not more of your bod—ow! That hurts.”

Adrian made his way over to the stool and sank down. He looked up at Deran who was rubbing his forehead with a shaky hand.

The laughter spilled from his mouth.

-0-

This was not how Deran thought their date would go. Or the morning after.

It hadn’t been an evening of candlelight and wooing and gourmet dining ending with them in bed. No, it hadn’t even been a breakfast with leftovers with Deran trying hard to put this back on track and make his wishes known.

He did get Adrian under his roof, and in his bed, eating a meal with him but nothing about that was romantic, not when you threw in his brothers and their stupid comments and their worst timing ever.

Adrian’s face was twisted but not in disgust; it was mirth. 

Deran twisted his fingers into his hair and tugged. “Fuck!”

That had an effect on Adrian whose laughter tapered off. “At least they care about you.”

That stopped him in his tracks. Adrian’s family wasn’t exactly supportive of each other and although Deran didn’t appreciate Craig and Pope busting in, they were just curious. “I care about you.”

Adrian crossed his arms over his chest and Deran’s attention was caught for a moment by his bulging biceps. His cock throbbed but Deran ordered it to relax because Adrian’s body language was defensive, or at least protective. “What did they mean about going steady? Am I a joke to them?”

_Shit._. Adrian had plenty of self-esteem when it came to his surfing skill, or his body, but when it came to relationships…the guy had zero confidence and usually zero taste.

Deran was hoping to change that.

“No, it’s not a joke. They know I invited you over for dinner so I could ask you if we could be in an exclusive relationship.” Deran sat heavily onto the stool across from Adrian. “It was the conversation I wanted to have last night over the dinner I wanted to make for you. I wanted to show you that I’ve changed, that I’m ready for a relationship. With you. I know you don’t like it when I try to take care of you, or even cuddle you, but it feels like maybe you’re open to something more now. Am I right?”

Holding his breath, Deran waited to see how Adrian would respond. He knew better then to tie his happiness to another person but honestly? Adrian was the key to his…everything.

-0-

Adrian was flummoxed. Deran was saying everything he wanted to hear. It’s just he’d been burned before and once burned, twice shy.

“So, when your brothers were talking about going steady, they were talking about,” Adrian paused and pointed first at Deran and then himself, searching for the right words.

“Us. That is an actual us. An exclusive us.” Deran swiped a hand through his hair, showing his nerves every bit as much as his stumbling words.

Not that Adrian was doing any better. He couldn’t even find the words he needed.

Deran approached him slowly. “Am I rushing you? I can back off. I didn’t mean to make this weird. Things have been going really well and we’ve been talking more and fuck, Adrian, I really, really want to be with you.”

If he couldn’t find his words then he’d let his actions speak for him. He threw himself at Deran, wrapping his arms around his neck, planting a deep kiss on his astonished lips. 

It didn’t take long before their tongues got into the act and Adrian lifted a leg and curled it around Deran, pressing their erections together. 

Deran shocked him by pulling his face back although his hands were hot and possessive on Adrian’s waist. Keeping him anchored in place against him. “You have no idea how much I want this but first I want to know where you stand.”

Usually if anyone put the brakes on sex it was Adrian so Deran pulling away was new.

And somehow hurtful.

Adrian put his foot on the ground and stepped backward. He needed some distance. 

A moment to process.

Deran wanted to be in an exclusive relationship? Deran who was newly out and having fun with his new status wanted to be with Adrian?

Adrian wanted to believe him. He really, really did.

But he just didn’t understand the change of heart. “Why?”

“What do you mean why?” Deran’s head was tilted, his face scrunched up.

Taking a deep breath, Adrian spilled his feelings. “You can have anyone you want. In fact, I’m pretty sure you’ve been working pretty hard to do just that which is actually what you should do. And now you say you want an exclusive relationship with me? Hell, until yesterday you’ve never even made actual plans with me instead of just including me because I’m there. When I ask why, I guess I want to know what’s changed.” Adrian was a bit light headed after unloading his thoughts since he’d forgotten to breathe during his word vomit.

Deran’s face was back to being red. Not a pretty blush but the florid color indicating he was about to lose it. “You’re the one who accused me of buying you off! If I wanted to do stuff with you, I felt like I had to make it seem accidental so you wouldn’t lose your shit.”

Adrian’s mouth flopped open. He was absolutely gobsmacked. Shaking his head, he closed his mouth and took another deep breath. At this rate he was going to begin hyperventilating but he needed to do something to center himself. “Buy me off? When exactly did I say that?!” His volume made his own head hurt and his voice climbed into the upper register where only dogs would soon hear him.

Ugh.

This time Deran shook his head. “Are you fucking kidding me? We were sixteen and I offered to pay so we could go to Tijuana and you had an absolute conniption about it.”

Huh. Adrian had said that…when he was sixteen. His world tilted on its axis. “Are you saying that you never made plans with me because of something I said when I was sixteen?”

Deran nodded his head but he seemed less angry. “When you put it like that, I sound pretty stupid.”

“No, you aren’t. Um, thank you for trying to follow my wishes?” It was actually kind of sweet. 

Except for the part where Adrian had gotten it into his thick skull that Deran didn’t care.

All these years he’d thought he was just an afterthought and it really just came down to Deran trying to do what he thought Adrian wanted, sort of, except where he manipulated things so Adrian was actually included.

No wonder his head ached.

He’d been clueless, and miserable, and all’s he’d needed to do was actually ask Deran what the fuck was going on.

Communication. It was key. It was something Adrian thought he was decent at, with Deran at least.

Maybe not so much.

_Fuck._

-0-

Deran watched several emotions flicker over Adrian’s face. His friend’s eyes finally widened and he smiled. “Yeah, let’s do this.”

His heartbeat pounded in his ears and Deran barely heard his own voice over its sound. “Exclusive?”

“Definitely.” Adrian moved back into Deran’s space but he did so slowly, as if he expected Deran to stop him.

“What do you want to do?” They should talk more.

Eat the meal although at this point it would need to be reheated.

Or they could…

Adrian grabbed his hand and towed him toward the stairs leading to the loft. “Let’s talk.”

Deran allowed himself to be tugged along. “We could talk down here.”

Throwing a smile over his shoulder, Adrian laughed. “What’s the fun in that? I thought maybe we’d use some body language.”

Deran’s board shorts tightened through the crotch. “Body language now. Words later?”

He watched Adrian’s impressive ass as he climbed upward, cheeks shifting and pushing against denim with each step. 

He’d had a crush on Adrian before they’d become friends and if he was honest, he’d had the crush throughout their friendship. This, finally getting the guy, was the best feeling possible.

Well, the best feeling possible maybe second to getting the guy of his dreams beneath him.

Next to him.

With him.

Once he cleared the steps, Deran pulled Adrian into his arms and kissed him softly. “Thank you for giving me a chance.”

“The chance was never really in question. You do, however, owe me dinner. I think that one is ruined.” Adrian had the prettiest blue eyes; it was hard not to notice when he stared at Deran so intently.

Adrian’s body was stunning and he was smart.

But it was what was on the inside that made him perfect for Deran; strong enough to keep Deran on his toes, supportive of all of his family’s bullshit and sweeter than a guy with Adrian’s past had a right to be.

He didn’t know what Adrian saw in him but he wasn’t going to question him about it.

No, right now he was going to enjoy the moment.

 

Finis

**Author's Note:**

> This story features Jacques Pépin’s Wine Merchant Steak recipe; it was my introduction to shallots as well.
> 
> Thank you for reading! Please check out the rest of the Exchange creations on Tumblr if you haven't already.


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